Consultative establishment of protected area sites

The community’s request to include a site into the conservation plan is judged by LLCTC’s environment officer based on its conservation value and the community’s level of commitment. Through continuous interactions with the community, the area is explored, and demarcated by GIS references. A committee formed by the community oversees and manages the new protected area. The management plan and map for the new LMMA are created and added to the network master plan.

  • Financial and advisory support by an NGO (TNC) in setting up the network and in supporting each participating community
  • A solid partnership between communities and LLCTC
  • Commitment for financial support by the provincial government

For the success of LMMAs, communities must have the lead from establishment to enforcement. It is therefore important to ensure that all groups in the community have agreed to the site proposed to be included as protected area in the network. There is a need to develop more consistent management plans for each site, particularly in the case of recently established conservation areas. Several community management committees lack skills and thus have problems in starting to draft their management plans and also to oversee the management of their protected area. They need capacity and support from LLCTC. Without consistent management plans for each site, there is no accountable oversight and clear representation of regulations for resources harvested or harvesting protocols. Management plans do not need to be in any specific format, but certain principles need to be defined and agreed upon by the whole community.